You are my Sunshine
by bloodamber
Summary: Loki has nightmares, but Tony knows just the way to soothe him back to sleep.


"_No!"_

The exclamation pulls Tony from sleep and he blinks blearily into the darkness, brain not fully in gear. It's not until he hears the panicked sounds of a person amidst a nightmare that he is jolted fully awake. Rolling onto his side he sees Loki thrashing in the bed next to him, covers twisted around his legs and sweat shining on his exposed chest.

Tony hates nights like these, when the nightmares drag Loki back into the horrors of his past, forcing him to relive the worst moments of his long life.

"No more… _stop_…" Loki whimpers, his pleas spurring Tony into action. He winces when a foot connects with his shin, but is undeterred from moving closer to the god who has come to mean more to him than anything.

Even as Loki begins to thrash harder, green sparks running over his body from his magic going haywire, Tony doesn't hesitate to reach out knowing Loki's magic wouldn't hurt him - had never hurt him in the past - no matter the nightmare.

With gentle touches he cups Loki's face in his hands, thumbs stroking soothingly over sharp cheekbones. Loki calms a little at the contact but continues to shake and breathe erratically, his face drawn in a grimace of pain. So Tony leans down, until his lips brush against the shell of Loki's ear.

"Hey, come back to me." He whispers softly, "come back to me, my sunshine." His fingers run soothingly through Loki's hair as he presses closer, until his body is flush against Loki's side, a reassuring touch of skin against skin.

Tony knows when Loki finally wakes by the way his body tenses in alarm before going limp in his arms. He pulls back to see Loki staring back at him, green eyes large and luminous in the semi dark.

"_Anthony_," Loki breathes his name like a prayer before closing the distance between them and pressing his lips against Tony's own in a soft caress. Tony pushes himself closer against Loki's side in response, offering his silent support as Loki regains his bearings. Loki pulls away from the chaste kiss to bury his face in Tony's neck, his breathing still shaky but evening out as Tony continues to stroke fingers through his hair and down his back.

Tony knew what it was like to have his sleep plagued by nightmares. Waking sweat soaked and shaking, throat raw from screaming and body so tense with remembered pain. He knew how much gentle touches and reassuring words helped, so offered as much comfort as Loki would accept from him.

They had been together over a year now and were both intimately familiar with the demons each of them carried. But despite the nightmares and broken sleep they always slept better together, learning through trial and error how best to comfort and pull each other from bad dreams.

For Loki, he responded best when Tony spoke to him and if there was one thing Tony could do, it was talk. So he would ramble on, telling Loki about his day. About what experiments he had been up to or what mischief his bots had caused due to Loki's influence. But most often he would whisper soft endearments in Loki's ear, reminding him of how much he was loved and that he was not alone.

He would use all the pet names he had coined for Loki, endearments that were for his ears alone. Bambi, snowflake, sparkles, _sunshine_. The last one was Loki's favourite, Tony could tell by the way his expression softened anytime it was used so Tony made sure to call it most often.

He wasn't exactly sure when that nickname had started, only that it was due to Loki's preference for warmth and sunlight. A direct rebellion against his heritage and true form that he still avoided like the plague. Tony had only managed to convince Loki to reveal it to him once but the discomfort and self loathing in Loki's crimson eyes as he gazed down at his blue skin had been enough for Tony to not ask again. He understood the feeling, even if he personally considered Loki's Jotun form beautiful.

**.**

Once Loki calms down he shifts until his head rests against Tony's chest, over the scar tissue left behind from the arc reactor. Tony knew his heartbeat was a grounding technique for Loki, a sure way to chase away the residual panic and reassure himself of what was real.

Tony was silent again by that point and he feels himself starting to slip back towards sleep, only fighting against the pull at the feeling of how tense Loki remains against him.

"Tell me what you need." Tony murmurs softly, rubbing soothing circles into Loki's back.

"Will you… would you sing for me Anthony?" Loki's request is heartbreakingly vulnerable, the words spoken as though he already expects them to be denied.

It had become a common request of Loki's after particularly bad nightmares, but Loki still struggled to ask for comfort, always thinking he needed to suffer alone. Swallowing the familiar stirrings of rage at how the Aesir had treated Loki, Tony starts to sing.

"_You are my sunshine, my only sunshine."_ His voice is rough with sleep and more than a little off key but Loki doesn't seem to mind, his body already falling lax against Tony's as he begins to relax into sleep.

"_You make me happy when skies are gray." _He continues, trying not to feel like too much of a smitten fool as he gazes down adoringly at the man, the _god_, who he was lucky enough to call his own.

"_You'll never know dear, how much I love you." _Tony whispers the next line against the top of Loki's when it's clear he has already fallen asleep, knowing he will be quick to follow. Relaxing into the bed, Tony wraps his arms more securely around Loki, hoping that the rest of the night will be peaceful for both of them.

"_Please don't take my sunshine away."_

_._

_Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed! This was actually posted on AO3 a few months ago but decided to post it here too. You can find me on AO3 under the same username and I plan to post a bunch more Frostiron stories over in future there because the fandom is much more alive and thriving :)_


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